Update Jan 24th (Day 110)

UPDATES ON THE WAR – Day 110 (Jan 24^th):

*Anderson Tours has officially decided to move forward with our April Holy Land Tour with contingencies in place to cancel or postpone if deemed unsafe! So far so good!

*We are one Day 110 (Jan 24^th). FIGHTING CONTINUES.

[We have created categories to make our summaries easier to read and understand.]

Headlines:

• The fallout from the ongoing Israel-Hamas war continued to roil the Middle East over the weekend. Israeli airstrikes near a Lebanese army checkpoint in south Lebanon killed a Hezbollah member Sunday (Jan 21^st), while five senior members of the Iranian Revolutionary Guards Corps were killed Saturday in Syria. Iran vowed to retaliate against Israel, which it claims was behind the attack in Syria; Israel hasn’t confirmed or denied involvement. In western Iraq, US and Iraqi troops were wounded after Iranian-backed militants known as the Islamic Resistance fired at an air base.

OUCH:

• Nearly the entire Gaza Strip population faces a humanitarian crisis, aid organizations said, as people in some areas described sewage flowing through the streets. This comes as the death toll has surpassed 25,000 people, according to the Hamas-controlled health ministry.

YEAH:

• Airlines such as Lufthansa, Swiss, Austrian and Aegean have resumed flights to Tel Aviv. Air France and Ryanair are slated to restart this week and next week.
• Anderson Tours is resuming Tours to sacred locations in the Holy Land beginning in April

IN THE SOUTH (RED SEA):

• United States fighter jets struck Houthi rebel sites in Yemen for a sixth time Friday (Jan 20^th), taking out anti-ship missile launchers that were prepared to fire. The Iranian-backed Houthi militants say their attacks on global shipping in the Red Sea corridor are aimed at stopping Israel’s war on Hamas in the Gaza Strip.
• The US and UK carried out more strikes against Houthi targets in Yemen on Monday (Jan 22^nd), marking the eighth round of attacks on the rebels’ infrastructure in just over 10 days.

GAZA (NORTH):

GAZA (SOUTH):

• Fierce battles are taking place as the IDF launches a new, large offensive on the western Khan Younis area in the southern Gaza Strip. Since this morning (Jan 24^th), around 50 Hamas operatives, including several commanders, have been killed by the ground troops of the Commando, Paratroopers, Givati and 7th brigades.
• The soldiers have encircled the Khan Younis refugee camp, and are beginning to maneuver into it, where several Hamas sites are located. The offensive is likely to last several more days,
• There are schools and hospitals in the area in which the army is currently operating, and the IDF has said that Hamas uses them to wage war – both by attacking Israeli soldiers and by firing rockets into Israel. The army also believes that Hamas will attempt to provoke the IDF by using civilian infrastructure to conduct warfare. The IDF said that prior to the offensive, it had called on civilians to remain within humanitarian corridors.
• Egypt rejected Israeli accusations that it has not maintained the security of its border with the Gaza Strip, leading to arms smuggling into the enclave.
• The IDF is scaling down its forces in Gaza City with full knowledge that many tunnels have been overlooked. This shouldn’t come as a surprise. The tunnels under the Gaza Strip were there even before Hamas’ founding in 1987 and it seems they’ll be here after this war too.
• This week, the New York Times reported from IDF sources that the original assessment had been of around 400 kilometers (248 miles) of tunnels under Gaza and that now the assessment holds that there could be over 700 kilometers (434 miles). The size of some of the tunnels also took them by surprise, which a small car could drive through.
• The Israel Defense Forces will not destroy all the Hamas and Islamic Jihad tunnels under Gaza. Probably not even most of them. This assessment, which has yet to be voiced publicly, is shared by all levels of the IDF. From the generals, through the brigade and battalion commanders who are spending entire weeks on the ground to destroy just one section of the tunnel system, all the way down to the combat engineering troops, who are now starting to come out of Gaza after three months of fighting with mixed feelings. On the one hand they have carried out an unprecedented number of tunnel demolition missions. On the other, they know many more such tunnels remain intact.
• A day will come when the Israeli security establishment will have to admit that destroying the tunnel networks was never a realistic objective. The IDF can perhaps deal with the prospect of a threat from underground, but the tunnels will remain beneath Gaza. Perhaps the most accurate assessment was that of a man who never dealt with tunnels, the aeronautical engineer Yair Ramati who was one of the fathers of Israel’s missile defense systems. He said, “in the skies, Israel will always have the technological advantage. So Hamas will always try to drag us underground.”

POST WAR GAZA:

IN THE NORTH (LEBANON):

• Two Hezbollah members were killed and several were wounded on Sunday (Jan 21^st) in an alleged Israeli drone strike on a car in the village of Kafra in southern Lebanon, according to Lebanese security sources. The attack came shortly after Hezbollah claimed responsibility for an anti-tank missile fired at Israel’s north. Local civil defense and hospital officials said seven people were wounded, including two women, one of whom was in critical condition. Israel did not comment on the strike in Kafra but announced it had struck Hezbollah targets in several locations in Lebanon on Sunday.

IN THE EAST (IRAQ/SYRIA):

JERUSALEM:

• Several dozen people are protesting at this time together with the families of hostages in Jerusalem, near Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s home. The Hostages and Missing Families Forum is expected to hold a rally where family members will speak.

WEST BANK:

NEGOTIATIONS – HOSTAGE RELEASE – CEASE FIRE:

• Israel has proposed allowing Hamas senior leaders to leave Gaza as part of a broader ceasefire agreement, two officials familiar with the discussions told CNN. Separately, Axios reported that Israel offered a 2-month truce as part of a prospective hostage deal.
• The U.S., Egypt and Qatar are pushing Israel and Hamas to agree to a new cease-fire proposal and are likely to begin negotiations in Cairo in the next few days, the Wall Street Journal reported. Officials briefed on the negotiations said both parties have shown interest in engaging in discussions.
• Israel has given Hamas a proposal through Qatari and Egyptian mediators that includes up to two months of a pause in the fighting as part of a multi-phase deal that would include the release of all remaining hostages held in Gaza, two Israeli officials said.
• It was also reported that the minister told the families that the military operation throughout the Gaza Strip and in the Khan Yunis region in particular is progressing. “There are initial signs that reaching Hamas’ most sensitive places advances us in achieving the two overarching goals in the war.”
• Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he rejected a hostage-release plan from Hamas that included Israel fully withdrawing from Gaza and leaving Hamas in power. At least 136 hostages remain in Hamas captivity. Hostage talks with the US, Qatar, and Egypt are expected to continue this week.
• Israeli officials involved in negotiating a mediated deal with Hamas said on Wednesday that the gaps between the sides are significant, and the negotiation process may take a while. Amid reports in foreign media about progress in the talks, one official stated, “The gap on fundamental issues is very large, and it seems that it cannot be bridged at this time. However, both sides continue to engage in indirect contacts in an attempt to find a formula that allows progress.”
• While Israel has sought to negotiate one stage at a time, Hamas is seeking “a package deal” that agrees a permanent cease-fire before hostages are released during the initial phase, said one of the sources, a Palestinian official close to the mediation efforts. Israel and Hamas are speaking through mediators, not talking directly.
• According to sources familiar with the discussions, Hamas is demanding that the IDF refrain from renewing fighting after the deal and sees holding onto hostages as the most significant leverage for ensuring calm in the Gaza Strip and safeguarding the lives of the organization’s leaders.
• One offer by Israel is to end the war if Hamas removes six senior leaders from the Gaza Strip, said a seventh source, a senior Hamas official. However, Hamas “absolutely” rejected the proposal, he said.

GLOBAL RESPONSE & INVOLVEMENT:

• According to a New York Time’s report, the Secretary General of the United Nations, António Guterres, said the IDF’s operation in the Gaza Strip has led to destruction and killing on a scale that is “completely unacceptable.” On Sunday, the Hamas-run Health Ministry in Gaza announced that more than 25,000 people have been killed in the Gaza Strip since the start of the war.
• According to a report by the Financial Times, EU foreign ministers will convene on Monday to discuss possible consequences to impose on Israel if Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu “continues to oppose Palestinian statehood.”

 

Holy Land Scripture Series

*If you would like to gain more understanding of the history of this country and conflict from a scriptural standpoint we recommend you take our Holy Land Scripture Course created to accompany our Virtual Tour of the Holy Land. Link below:

 

QUESTIONS TO CONSIDER:

What should Israel do in order to secure peaceful borders and relations with the Palestinians and other Arab neighbors as well as facilitate the release the hostages still being held in Gaza?   

What should Hamas do to get needed support and help? (They are land-locked and restricted and are experiencing extreme economic conditions)

*We know the questions are MANY and the issues deep and complex. We hope the information shared on this blog will help you process all the information and issues.

 

*If you would like to subscribe to this blog and receive notifications when new posts are made please email Dr. Clark Anderson at clark@andersontours.com